muhsi1

one surgery that is often done at the same time as a wls is hiatus hernia repair. the scars are the same and you would have the same discomfort. nothing would seem out of place. often after ann hiatus hernia repair, if it is too tight patients may experience some dumping and all the symptoms that one has with wls in the early days. laparoscopic hiatus hernia repair would be the most appropriate and closest to the truth in syptoms and appearance. look at the 2 procedures on you tube and you will see that your cover up will be successfull.

Hi All I am really interested to learn if I have issues not related to the sleeve. I just love my sleeve and have lost weight from 115kg to 89.5kg in 4 months. I seem to have what can be considered hot flushes for no reason and then other times I seem to get cold more often. It is a constant trip to the aircon control and taking off and putting on clothes. Given I am 52 years old, I had my hormones checked and the dr insists that I am not in menopause and hardly even in pre menopause. Please let me know if anyone else also has or had this. Does it pass?

Hi Harlemlooser No your sleeve is safe. Your intrabdominal pressure will increase with straining but this is outside the sleeve and does not strain the suture area at all.

I worked down my clothes side seams once, I was a size 22-24 at the time of surgery. Worked it down to a size 20. After that I could not work the clothes down further and purchased a size 18/16 slacks and pants, black and grey ,I already had navy blue, I still used many of my tops and just wore loose jerseys over it. I purchased some more clothes on Xmas, as the stores don't close in the united arab emirates then. I made sure that they are tight so that when I loose some more, they will just sit comfortably or be loose but only require one more adjustment. It was well worth wearing the big clothes, as once I appeared in fitting clothes, I was told by many folks that it looks as if I had dropped 2 dress sizes in a week. the scale did not budge in that time. I did it this way as I don't want to spend too much money on clothes that I can only wear a few times. I also try to mix and match so that I can use my bottoms with at least 5 tops or different jersey's or knits so that they seem like different outfits

I am only 5 months out but feel pretty much like you do. I don't think it is pure vanity but after feeling like nothing for so long and settling, we are just enjoying our achievements. I think we not realize that we need to take care of ourselves and as our self esteem grows, we feel better and it shows. Also I try to look my best so that I can influence others to also change their lives. The sleeve is such a gift! What irritates me is that others that are almost at perfect weight don't realize how dangerous the first few pounds that you pack on can be.

What Mistysj said is correct. She described it perfectly!

Don't worry, this is just fluid retention and will be released soon. They fluid load you as the amount that you can get in with a new sleeve is usually not much. Once you improve your fluid intake and move more, the situation will sort itself out. Please don't worry or restrict your fluids more than is needed. you are consuming too little in the first few days as it is. The great thing is that once this happens, the scale and your Centimeters go down significantly. Hang in there!

Hi Monique I have not had a leak but had patients in ICU that have had one, without fail they present with the most excrutiating pain. My surgeon also told me this. It is not a mild pain, where you suspect there is something wrong, more along the tends of, "if I don't get help now , I wont make it!" I think the fear of getting one is top of mind for all sleevers once they come out of the surgery without problems. My first question each visit was, am I safe from a leak yet?

I take my PPI Nexium every day. It is the first thing I put into my mouth. Firstly I am scared that I cannot distinguish between acid hunger or other hunger and I never want to be hungry. Secondly, I paid for my surgery myself and would not take a chance that an ulcer could mess everything up. We have so little stomach left and the acid could easily damage the sleeve. This is just my take on it. I was a rep for nexium and am a qualified ER and ICU nurse manager and my choice is to take mine daily. This is just my choice and I am by no means suggesting you should do the same. Good luck

Dont worry, your body will go through a lot of changes. Losing weight means that there are lots of byproducts of fat metabolism that need to be excreted. It will get less but the initial BO is from Ketones, a normal product of fat metabolism and it manifests in mainly the breath but also in perspiration to a lesser extent. You may also experience what can be described as hot flushes due to the hormonal changes you go through during the sleeve weightloss process. This too shall pass!

No problem taking it twice. I used to sell it as a pharmaceutical rep and we had tons of studies showing that it is safe. If it was me, I would take it just to avoid the acid hunger. Once you have the initial acid secretion under control, you could always go down to one again. I am sure your Dr will agree. The last thing you want is acid eroding your newly healed sleeve!

Congrats Laura Ven you look great and the hard work shows!

Great post, I had half the info but now have the full story. At least temporary hair loss is not detrimental to your health.

Don't worry about it, Any stitches from under the skin eventually dissolve, From an emergency nurse perspective, don't mess with it. Best to cover it in a way that it does not hook like steristrip or another breathable plaster and let the surgeon sort it, most times it is not a big issue.

Well it seem as if we all face the same battles, well done to all that replied before me, seems we all have our own pace and are getting there. If we did not have addictive behavior to some extent we would have not gained the weight in the first place. I also use my fitness pal so and have it set at 1kg weight loss per week, needless to say I do not always lose this but as long as I keep the Kilojoules within the prescribed range, I know I am safe. If I have a day where I am bordering on my limit or exceed it, I walk on the treadmill to balance it out. Another strategy I have started is to buy watermelon or cantaloupe as I just love them and they are mostly water in content. I feel this helps me get part of my daily fluid requirement as well. They are not very nutrient dense and fill me up. I have learnt that every 500gram of lean body mass I gain, burns 50 calories extra per day. My current aim it to continue with my personal trainer and gain 8 or 9 kg lean body mass at least, this will give me 400to 450 extra calories burnt per day, making it easier to lose and maintain. Good luck to all in their journey. Wish that it was as easy to gain muscle as it was to gain fat then we would all be lean machines. LOL!

Hi I have just posted on another thread about thermage. Google and you tube it if you like. I will certainly use it in the future. The instrument cools the surface of the skin and heats the lower layers causing the collagen fibers to shrink and get thicker, this smoothes out the skin and gives new support.

I have looked at thermage. Google it and you tube it. I believe it is costly but for folks that do not want surgery or who have a lesser problem it would most likely help. I will do it when the time comes. The instrument cools the surface of the skin and then heats the lower layers. This causes the collagen to shrink, become thick and shorter strands, smoothing out the skin and lessening sag and wrinkles. You tube have some great videos on it.

Muscle most certainly weigh more so I would rather look at the muscle weight and fat weight rather than just a number. I also feel great after losing about 55lb but still am in the obese range and folks are already starting the too thin conversation. I will certainly aim for the normal BMI range and then re-evaluate closer to goal. It is a journey and I think we should just enjoy it. After 3 months out, food no longer controls me.

Congrats, seems that is the way it goes, I also thought that I was not losing but had massive inches lost during this time, Sleeved 23 July so only halfway.

These folks who are ready to jump on the band wagon of possible death due to surgery, need to review the stats of folks that die from heart attacks, strokes and lose limbs and quality of life due to obesity. Yet they find that a better option. On the otherhand if someone is not informed about what the surgery would entail or how drastically it will improve your life, think they are protecting you. Somehow they do not realize that we think about our weight whent we get up and wow to stick to a diet, think about it when the clothes we put on do not fit well, regret every reflection in the mirror, avoid camera's and cringe when shopping for clothes as the sizes seem to rise with each excursion. AFTER SURGERY SMALLER SIZES EACH SHOPPING TRIP, CLOTHES THAT ARE TOO BIG, NO MORE PAINFUL JOINTS, EASY MOVING, FEELING WELL ETC.

One regret that I did not do this years ago!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks guys, I really needed this. I am so frustrated, my *small* clothes from pre surgery are loose now, I have lost 35 lb in 6 weeks but the clothes are not fitting well but it is too early to shop or alter the clothes and for the past 3 weeks I have not lost much. As everyone says it is a journey and as I was not successful for years, this should acutually be a dream come true but we are all impatient and when a good loss pace suddenly grinds to a halt it makes one very worried. Thanks for all the inspirational stories, I love sharing everyone's journeys.

I have not named my sleeve but find the idea quite enchanting, will need to give it some thought.

I know exactly how you felt, did the same thing a time or two with good food but just too much by one spoon. Also had to go and get rid of it. I could never do that before but it is so easy with my sleeve, dont like doing it however as I am scared that my sleeve will get damaged as I am only 1 month out but rather that than the pain and discomfort. Wish that there would be a pre alert to that one bite or spoon too much but it is a matter of its good now and the very next minute you are in trouble. The frustrating thing is that the amount varies with the food and time of day!

Hi All I have had a good run of the first month and lost 15kg or just over 30lbs. I am terrified that my restriction will not last. I know this is silly but I think the fact that once the swelling goes down in the sleeve, what you can eat is still only a little but considerably more than before. Can anyone share their experience on the topic. My mind tells me that my capacity is gone forever and only 15-20% left but my fear makes me paranoid. Am I just a basket case or is this a general concern? Could guys that are further out let me know how they felt and are feeling now. This truly is an exiting journey!